In the News (Sun 2 Aug 15)

Dewi's early education was at a small Celtic monastery at Henfynyw, south of present day Aberaeron, and was completed at Llanddeusant under Paulinus (whose sight Dewi is said to have restored, one of many miracles attributed to him during his lifetime).

Dewi established a monastery in the area where St David's is now, using it as the hub of a network of monasteries he was to establish in west Wales during the sixth century.

Dewi was buried on the site of the present St David's cathedral (built in 1188) though whether his remains are still preserved in the reliquary behind the main altar must be open to serious doubt.Dewi's reputation grew during the Middle Ages.

David, DewiSant, is the patron saint of the Welsh, and March 1, his feast day, is celebrated as a patriotic and cultural festival by the Welsh in Wales and around the world.

DewiSant was a Celtic monk of the sixth century.

One miracle often recounted is that once when Dewi was preaching to a crowd at Llandewi Brefi those on the outer edges could not hear, so he spread a handkerchief on the ground, and stood on it to preach, whereupon the ground swelled up beneath him, and all could hear.

David was probably one of the (if not the) most influential of the early Christians in Wales during the 'Age of Saints.' The cathedral built in his name in the 12th Century was a highly significant shrine for medieval Christians - two pilgrimages to St. Davids equaled one to Rome.

It must be considered that Rhigyfarch was the son of the Bishop of St David's, and that the Life was written as propaganda to establish Dewi's superiority and defend the bishopric from being taken over by Canterbury and the Normans.

From the 12th century onwards, Dewi's fame spread throughout South Wales and as far as Ireland and Brittany.

Though the feast of Dewi as a religious festival came to an end with the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, the day of his birth became a national festival during the18th century.

www.stdavidsga-cymru.org /stdavidday.html (874 words)

St. David's Day - History(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)

Well, St. David, or DewiSant as the Welsh call him, is the saint of all saints in Wales.

There are a lot of prophecies and miracles that DewiSant is said to have preformed.

Because they didn't have megaphones back then, the story goes that he spread a handkerchief on the ground, stood on it to preach and all of a sudden, like an alien on Roswell, he was hovering above the crowd and everyone could hear him.

Dewi's legacy to his people still lives in the "little things" that he modeled during his ministry.

The lowly person in Dewi's sense is one who is too aware of his or her own failings to judge the failings of another.

As much as I would like to stand in some high position and call the Church (and particularly my denomination) to repentance and the holistic Christian life characterized by Celtic Christian spirituality, my first and true task is to heed the exhortation of DewiSant, to follow him in the little things.

We’ve got a range of T-shirts with a red dragon or a DewiSant cross on them, and the website addresses SAFWCH.com, CaruCymru.com and NotEnglish.com.

Send us £7 with a note saying which website you would prefer, whether you would like a red dragon or a DewiSant design, what size you would like, and whether you would prefer a fl or a white T-shirt, and we’ll have one in the post to you within a fortnight.